AUSTIN – Dallas police Senior Cpl. Mark Nix took his life into his hands when he pursued a suspected murderer earlier this year, and died because of it.
Fellow officer Jeremy Borchardt, another senior corporal in Dallas, was wounded in a hostage situation last summer.
"These are not the actions of people who think of their own safety first," Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday in a ceremony honoring fallen and injured emergency responders, whom he called "genuine patriots. "They are people who not only swore an oath, but live it out in full measure with integrity, bravery and unassailable character."
The two were among 27 officers, firefighters, troopers and other responders across Texas who received Star of Texas 2007 awards from the governor in a Sept. 11 commemorative ceremony. Dallas police Cpl. Dale Hackbarth, who was shot during a drug raid last year, and Dallas Fire Rescue Lt. Michael David Otto, also injured in the line of duty, were among those honored.
Mr. Perry called them "remarkable heroes" and "selfless servants," and told their families in the Senate chamber that they are "the finest Texas has to offer."
During the ceremony, Mr. Perry also called on Texans to remember the 479 emergency workers killed in the Sept. 11 attacks, as well as the soldiers who "stand between us and those would repeat the atrocities of that fateful day."
Cpl. Nix, 33, was gunned down in March after trying to pull over a man whose car matched the description of a suspect that had just left the scene of a murder. The man, a known gang member with a long criminal record, led officers in a chase before they caught up with him. Cpl. Nix, who was also a Navy corpsman and Army reservist, was killed as he tried to get the driver out of the car.
His parents and Cpl. Borchardt, who was there when his friend was killed, were among those who attended the ceremony on his behalf.
"He loved his job, loved what he did," said his mother, Cheryle Nix, who said her son's sacrifice drove home the risks other officers take every day. "I appreciate them even more now than I did before."
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